Sunday, July 6, 2014

Memoirs of Today: Hiroshima (2007), Tama (2010), Hiroshima (2013)

Goooooooood afternoon, everyone!

In honor of the fact that it was exactly 7 years ago today (ironically, my lucky number) that I first came to Hiroshima, I decided it would be fitting to launch my new long-intended series: "Memoirs of Today." These will be posts written about experiences that happened on the same day in years prior.

.... So in other words, this is my way to compensate for the fact that I posted absolutely nothing during my actual travels n the post. Whoops... :x

Since I have nothing from my actual *today* to write about (just going through the motions of work here!) I present to you this day in my history....

July 5th

2007 - Hiroshima city, Hiroshima, Japan
2010 - Tama, Tokyo, Japan
2013 - Hiroshima, Hiroshima, Japan

2007
Hiroshima, Japan




This was the very first day I ever set foot in the place that would eventually become my home.
We had spent our first few days in Japan in Kyoto, and had traveled into the city after a one-day, one-night stay on the nearby mystical island of Miyajima. 





Our first item on the agenda was to visit the Peace Memorial Park and Museum
Here we saw the infamous A-Bomb dome and tried not to grimace as we read about the horrifying facts about the after effects of the atom bomb. This, alongside visiting the Toul Sleng Genocide Museum in Cambodia a few years before, was by far the most sobering experience I've had.



After we were all thoroughly depressed, our guide decided that Hiroshima-style Okonomiyaki was just the thing to cheer us up! Unfortunately, I was one of the only people in our group who actually liked it...
While we waited for all the members of the group, I spotted this adorable gyaru and instantly fell in love with her hair!


Aaaaaaaaanyway
Next we went to Shukkeien Garden with stuffed tummies and a need for some relaxation after all the sobering things we saw.






Once we had thoroughly refreshed our minds and managed to catch a glimpse of the resident turtle, we ventured into town to spend the rest of the day shopping and exploring.
Since there were only two girls from my high school on the trip, myself included, we decided, what better way to spend the rest of the evening than by finding good bargains and making new friends?!




And so we did. And it was glorious.

And that concludes this Memoir from this day in 2007. :)





2010
Tama, Tokyo, Japan

By this time in 2010, I had thoroughly settled into my position as a volunteer English teacher at a Christian church in Tama, Japan. I was staying with the pastor of the church, an adorable widow with quite the witty sense of humor! I had been there for a month already, and we decided to go out to eat since we hadn't done so together for some time.


Isn't she adorable?!




2013
Hiroshima, Japan



And, of course, last year marked my official move to Japan. 
I had arrived in Hiroshima the night before. It was my first full day in the city, so I decided to get the feel for my new house after a brief walk along Hondoori, the shopping area in Hiroshima's city center. <3






That marks the end of my memoirs for this day~
Looking back, what have your experiences been on this day~? :)


2 comments:

  1. My school had a similar trip to Miyajima and Hiroshima! Except we went to the Peace Museum on the first day, then went mountain climbing in Miyajima the second. Miyajima is definitely one of my fav places in Japan! :>
    Looking forward to you continuing this series! Yay-yay!

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  2. Ahh, I totally have to agree~ I absolutely love Miyajima! Something about it being an island makes it feel even more "lost in time" in some ways~ :3


    Aw, thanks darling! Hopefully I can manage to keep up with it! xD

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